Rep. Mike Thompson: compromise on guns possible

Rep. Mike Thompson, the Napa Dem who heads the House task force on gun violence prevention, said he sees a chance for compromise despite Wednesday’s Senate hearing (see below), if everybody lays down their arms, so to speak. Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-NY, made a similar point at the hearing, calling for universal background checks as a starting point, rather than California Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s bill to ban assault weapons.

Here’s Thompson’s statement:

“Gun violence is a complex problem with complex solutions. To address it, we need a comprehensive approach that’s developed by having every idea on the table and everyone at the table. That’s the approach my task force has taken since day one, and it’s the approach the Senate started today.

“As a hunter and gun owner I will not give up my guns and I will not ask other law-abiding Americans to give up theirs. Not only am I personally against this, the Supreme Court made it clear in the Heller case that the Constitution won’t allow it. But as a father and grandfather, I also know we have a responsibility to keep our kids, communities and country safe from gun violence.

“This debate isn’t a choice between either protecting the Second Amendment or reducing gun violence. It’s about the willingness of a responsible majority to do both. By working together – both across the aisle and between Congressional chambers and branches of government – we can put policies in place that reduce gun violence and respect the 2nd Amendment rights of law-abiding Americans.”

In District of Columbia v. Heller (2008), the Supreme Court affirmed that Americans have an individual right to keep and bear arms. The court also affirmed that there is no constitutional problem with certain limitations. This ruling provides people with an opportunity to work between the extremes and within the confines of the Second Amendment to pass legislation that will reduce gun violence.

Thompson is a hunter, and also a veteran who carried an assault weapon during a tour in Vietnam.